Electioneering or Fashion?

So, after being invited to at least 5 different groups on facebook, warning me not to wear any Obama buttons or shirts to the polls on November 4^th, I wasn't at all surprised to read this article in Politico. And at the very least, I'm glad to see that some people are making an effort to clear up whether campaign items can or cannot be worn. And I'm sure that campaign shirts and buttons are a violation of electioneering rules. I'm not sure I agree with the electioneering law, though.

I'd like to believe that people are not so easily convinced of who to vote for just because someone is campaigning within a certain number of feet of the polling place. I really want to believe that everyone spends as much time as I do, thinking about the issues and choosing which candidate to vote for. I know that if there is someone on line in front of me wearing a McCain shirt, my vote won't be changed. And as it is, I've seen people campaigning right outside of the bounds. It's really just an arbitrary line.

On the other hand, being able to wear a shirt supporting my candidate on Election Day is just not that important to me. Maybe I should feel like my freedom of expression is being abridged, but it's just not all that much of a hardship to take a button off a bag or put a jacket over a shirt. This year is my first election, and I'm thrilled that it's looking like it's going to be such a historic one. What I wear when I go to place my vote doesn't matter.

Maybe I'm just saying that be a New Yorker. Because when you look at me, it's pretty obvious who I'm going to vote for; I'm young and live in a liberal city. Most of the people around me who care about politics are Barack Obama supporters. If I lived somewhere where I was the only one, I'm pretty sure I'd want everyone to see that I was voting for Obama.

Maybe in places like that, someone oughta hand out "I just voted for Obama!" buttons just outside the boundaries. The visibility couldn't hurt, and you wouldn't have to worry about whether or not you'll be allowed to vote.